This son seemed to have everything he needed while living in his father’s home and yet he was willing to leave this all to search for something. Why do you think he did this? What were his motivations?

What do you think it says about the father that he was willing to let his son leave and squander his wealth? What do you think he understood that the son did not?

When you look at the world around you, what are the kinds of things that people try to connect to in order to fulfill their longings for love, purpose, and meaning?

Do you think that longing is a bad thing? How can an awareness of our longings point us to fulfillment in God?

What happened in the son’s life for him to realize that he was trying to find satisfaction in the wrong places?

What happens in our lives to make us awaken to our longings? Believing that others have something we don’t? Disappointment in life? A broken heart?

How is the longing the son had for food to fill his stomach similar to the longings we have to feel fulfilled in our own lives? Who can we connect with to help us understand our longings?

Pastor Randy presented a wager in this week’s sermon:

God, if you are real, make yourself real to me.

Is this something you need to ask God? Or is there someone in your life that needs to ask this of God? How might this prayer begin to help you understand how your longings can be forever satisfied?